The annual PONARS Eurasia Spring Policy Conference convenes international experts from North America, Russia, Ukraine, and other parts of Eurasia for a series of panel discussions. This year’s hybrid event offers insight from leading scholars and experts into comparative politics and society in the region, both related to and beyond Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.
Conference Agenda
9:00 am Opening Remarks: David Szakonyi, The George Washington University
9:00 am-10:30 am
Panel 1: Ukrainian Society and Politics in Wartime
Tymofii Brik (Kyiv School of Economics), Oleksandr Fisun (Kharkiv National University), Ivan Gomza (Kyiv School of Economics), Tetyana Malyarenko (National University Odessa Law Academy), Borys Kormych (National University Odessa Law Academy)
Chair: Henry Hale (The George Washington University)
Discussant: Michael Keays (Wilson Center)
10:45 am-12:30 pm
Panel 2: Authoritarianism and Democracy Promotion
Hannah Chapman (University of Oklahoma), Emil Dzhuraev (Soros Foundation – Kyrgyzstan), Cole Harvey (Oklahoma State University), Valerie Sperling (Clark University), Laura Henry (Bowdoin College), Margarita Zavadskaya (University of Helsinki, Finland)
Chair: Mikhail Troitskiy (University of Wisconsin-Madison)
Discussant: Heather Ashby (U.S. Institute of Peace)
1:30 pm-3:00 pm
Panel 3: Russian War Practice and Consequences
Kristina Hook (Kennesaw State University), Marat Iliyasov (Miami University, OH), Jean-Francois Ratelle (University of Ottawa), Andrei Semenov (Center for Comparative History and Politics, Perm)
Chair: Timothy Frye (Columbia University)
Discussant: Miriam Lanskoy (National Endowment for Democracy)
3:15 pm-5:00 pm
Panel 4: Russian Ideology and Values on the Offensive
Ivan Fomin (Center for European Policy Analysis), Ivan Grek (The George Washington University), Azamat Junisbai (Pitzer College), Katie Stewart (Knox College)
Chair: Marlene Laruelle (The George Washington University)
Discussant: Eva Busza (National Democratic Institute)